Hinch pushes ‘reset button’ on Springer
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Hitless in 50 of his last 54 atbats and sporting his lowest OPS since April 27, George
Springer received a “reset” day on Friday from manager A.J. Hinch.
Springer finished Thursday’s 1-0, series-opening victory over the Tampa Bay Rays 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. His batting average dipped to .256.
Nineteen days ago, after a June 10 win against the Texas Rangers, it was at .295.
“I’ve stayed with him a while because he can handle a lot,” Hinch said Friday. “Last night was the first night I felt he was really frustrated with not only the results of what was going on but also the process that was at the plate — when he’d foul a ball off, even some of his takes.”
Springer endured a 2-for-28 skid in April before finishing the month with an .826 OPS. He has made hard contact during his June funk, though. He just missed a home run against Toronto on Sunday. On Monday, Randal Grichuck robbed him of a three-run shot in the ninth inning.
“A nice mental, physical day off will be nice … kind of a reset button,” Hinch said. “I told him we were going to disrupt his natural, come to the ballpark every day and play. We needed to break that monotony and try something different to get him going.”
Perez brought up from Class AA
While he stretched with his fellow pitchers Thursday night prior to Class AA Corpus Christi’s game in Arkansas,
Cionel Perez noticed his manager approach.
Hooks skipper Omar Lopez entered the circle to inform Perez, the flame-throwing 22year-old southpaw, of his first call-up to the major leagues.
“It was a beautiful moment,” Perez said Friday through a translator.
The Astros promoted Perez before Friday’s game, taking the roster spot vacated by Carlos Correa’s trip to the disabled list and affording the Astros’ bullpen a full complement of eight pitchers.
In 14 games with the Hooks, Perez posted a 2.20 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 571⁄3 innings. He walked 21 batters while producing 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings. Perez will pitch out of the Astros’ bullpen.
Ten of Perez’s 14 Class AA appearances were starts. Astros manager A.J. Hinch reaffirmed Friday the organization still views the Cuban as a starter long term.
“It’s a little bit more natural — especially on a team like this — to break in as a reliever for an outing or two,” Hinch said. “Right now, our organization is trying to use as many resources as we can to win as many games as we can. If that means Cionel needs to go to the bullpen for an outing, for this weekend or whatever, we’ll go with it.”
After originally offering him a deal in excess of $5 million that was voided due to a physical issue, the Astros signed Perez to a restructured deal in December 2016. He was added to the club’s 40-man roster last November to protect him in the Rule 5 draft.
Armed with a fastball that hovers in the mid-90s, Perez spent this offseason and spring refining his physical conditioning. He’s throwing a harder, reshaped slider, he said, and believes his fastball command is improving.
“He can be a complete pitcher,” Hinch said. “I think more than anything, the command and control of his pitches, the more we can get his shape under control and get him to be able to feel the difference between a good pitch and a bad pitch. As I told him when I met with him, good counts plus his pitches equal outs in the big leagues.”
Perez’s promotion was a homecoming of sorts. He has a house in the Tampa area. His father, who lives in Miami, accompanied Perez’s wife to Tropicana Field on Friday for his first major league game.
“I am very excited for my first time in the big leagues,” Perez said. “It surprised me a lot.”
Smith undertakes rehab assignment
Nineteen days after he was placed on the disabled list with right elbow soreness, reliever
Joe Smith began a rehab assignment with Class AA Corpus Christi on Friday.
Smith required 19 pitches to escape a scoreless sixth inning. He allowed three singles and stranded the bases loaded with a strikeout. Fourteen of his 19 pitches were strikes.
Whether the Astros send Smith out on a second assignment is contingent upon how closely the outing mimics a real major league one.
“A strike-throwing, two-pitch reliever with some experience, there’s always that threat of a seven, eight or nine-pitch inning,” manager A.J. Hinch said before the rehab stint. “There’s also the threat of a longer-pitch inning. We want him to feel like he went through an outing, have a little bit of endurance built up, use both his pitches, and we’ll determine whether he’s ready now or wait until the next series.”